Seelaus Asset Management LLC Takes Position in BlackRock (NYSE:BLK)

Key Points

• Seelaus Asset Management LLC has invested approximately $556,000 in BlackRock, purchasing 587 shares during the first quarter.
• Insider trading activity revealed that Director Rachel Lord sold 18,036 shares worth over $20 million, resulting in a 48.43% decrease in her position.
• BlackRock reported earnings of $12.05 per share for the last quarter, exceeding analyst expectations of $10.41, with revenue increasing by 12.9% year-over-year.

Seelaus Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of BlackRock (NYSE:BLK - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 587 shares of the asset manager's stock, valued at approximately $556,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of BLK. Fairway Wealth LLC lifted its position in BlackRock by 76.5% during the 1st quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 30 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 13 shares during the period. Investment Management Corp VA ADV purchased a new position in shares of BlackRock during the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Cheviot Value Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of BlackRock during the first quarter worth about $30,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of BlackRock during the 1st quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of BlackRock in the first quarter valued at $34,000. 80.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on BLK shares. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $1,180.00 to $1,170.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. UBS Group reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $980.00 price objective on shares of BlackRock in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $1,247.00 to $1,224.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of BlackRock to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, May 24th. Finally, Bank of America raised their target price on BlackRock from $1,214.00 to $1,224.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $1,151.21.

Insider Transactions at BlackRock

In related news, Director Rachel Lord sold 18,036 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,125.60, for a total transaction of $20,301,321.60. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 19,205 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,617,148. This trade represents a 48.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Fabrizio Freda sold 4,434 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,122.81, for a total value of $4,978,539.54. Following the sale, the director directly owned 3,506 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,936,571.86. This trade represents a 55.84% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 66,494 shares of company stock worth $74,694,573 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 1.98% of the company's stock.

BlackRock Price Performance

Shares of BLK stock traded up $10.83 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $1,120.47. 404,897 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 675,821. The stock's 50-day moving average is $1,046.27 and its 200-day moving average is $983.01. The stock has a market cap of $173.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 4.34 and a quick ratio of 4.34. BlackRock has a 52 week low of $773.74 and a 52 week high of $1,130.66.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 15th. The asset manager reported $12.05 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $10.41 by $1.64. The company had revenue of $5.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.40 billion. BlackRock had a net margin of 29.68% and a return on equity of 15.83%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 12.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $10.36 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that BlackRock will post 47.41 EPS for the current year.

BlackRock Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 23rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 5th will be issued a $5.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 5th. This represents a $20.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. BlackRock's dividend payout ratio is currently 50.39%.

BlackRock Company Profile

BlackRock, Inc is a publicly owned investment manager. The firm primarily provides its services to institutional, intermediary, and individual investors including corporate, public, union, and industry pension plans, insurance companies, third-party mutual funds, endowments, public institutions, governments, foundations, charities, sovereign wealth funds, corporations, official institutions, and banks.